A/N: Hey guys. For a the last couple of years, De Seken was sold on Kindle Worlds. But now when the program is shut down, I re-uploaded it to here. Please keep in mind that earnings from my Amazon sales went towards producing a film that I'm still trying to produce. If you enjoy the work and feel generous, or simply want more details, please feel free to check my website, which appears on my profile. Thanks!

This story was originally published on fanfiction net and AO3 between March and December 2016. While re-formatting it for Amazon Kindle Words, its text has also been reedited to offer a smoother, cleaner reading experience. No major plot lines or dialogue were changed.

Some translation will appear in footnotes when need be. All thoughts are in italics and all spoken Trigedasleng will appear in bold and italics throughout the entire story. Most importantly, some notes will include spoilers for things that happen later on in the story or in canon. When that's the case, the note will indicate so with a spoiler warning. Some other times it will just point out when something is meant to be a Hamilton reference. :)

I'd like to take this opportunity to thank my dear friend, Trish, who betad a major part of volume 1 before she realized I'm insane and too time consuming.

I also like to thank Lesly-Oh for the beautiful cover and her ongoing fanart on social media which makes many people very happy.

The reasoning behind writing this story in the first place appears in on a post on my Tumblr (shokoshik. Check the "De Seken" tag) which contains a few spoilers but definitely explains the vision overall.

As for the story itself – it is extremely canon inspired, meant to give you the feeling that these events could have happened on the show. But of course, only to a point. Especially when it comes to volume 2, which, as we'll learned as season 4 unfolded, is completely its own thing, an alternate season 4 if you will. One big thing to mention – the majority of volume 1 was written before we learned about Luna and so she doesn't exist here, though there's a bonus chapter included in volume 2 to allow for a scenario in which she does exist. More explanations about the subject will be in the notes when it's time.

Another big thing is the way Lexa speaks. She's way more lighthearted in this story, silly at times, even, and while it's far from what we see in canon, we see a separation of how she behaves when she's the Commander vs. when she's with loved ones, and especially with Costia. We also see how she gets more and more rough and distant as unfortunate events unfold. I'd like to think she was all those things before we met her after she went through many tragedies, and I'd like to think she would've regained those qualities if we didn't lose her.

I hope you enjoy this imagined exploration of what could've been Costia and Lexa's (and also Clark's to some extent) past and future.

De Seken

Volume 1

Prologue

She was sitting on the ground, leaning against a tree, crying. It seemed to her like she was doing a lot of that lately. But this time it was different. She had never, in her life, been here before. Her mother wasn't around to sooth her and soon enough, she realized, her mother won't be around at all.

She was so overcome with emotions and fear she didn't even take the time to appreciate all that was around her, the things she always saw on screens, read about in books. She always dreamed about getting out into the world, especially after everything her mother told her in secret, but being a six-year-old, alone in a secluded forest, feeling somewhat deserted and confused, she simply couldn't focus on all the beauty that surrounded her.

"They will kill me," she cried to her mother before her mother left.

"Why do you say that?" her mother asked in worry, thinking she taught her daughter better than that.

"They are bad people," the daughter recited.

"Not all of them, no," her mom explained again with a sigh, "just like not all of us are good people."

Her child seemed so small and hurt, it broke her heart to leave her pride and joy behind, but her daughter had to get used to it. They were running out of time and this was the only choice they had.

"You are a child who's done no wrong to anyone," she tried again. "They will not hurt you. This is not their way."

"Why do you have to go?" her daughter demanded.

"Because if I take much longer I'll be late for work, and then someone will look for me, and then we're in trouble," the mother reminded.

"Wouldn't you be in trouble anyway once they find out I'm gone?" the child inquired worriedly.

"I might be, but it's not going to matter."

She nodded at her mom in understanding.

"Remember what I told you on how to get back in, but only if you need to, and not for a while, okay?" her mother warned once more.

"Okay," she agreed.

"And also remember…"

"I know. I won't let anyone see. Not even father," the girl repeated what she was told numerous times before. She wasn't sure exactly why she was asked to do this, but her mother told her to, so she was going to comply.

"I have to go. I love you, Baby."

"I love you too, Mama."

The parent laid a lingering kiss on the child's forehead, both knowing this might be the last time they ever saw each other.

"Your father will be here soon enough. He promised. And you're going to love him," the mother tried to soothe.

"Okay," the child agreed. There was nothing more to say. She was just hoping that her mother was right.

But then she saw her mom leave her for the last time and two hours passed with no interruptions from either friend or foe. She was afraid and felt weird in the clothes her mother made her wear so she could blend in.

At first she tried to imagine what her father was like. She'd seen pictures before. He seemed tall, strong, and very handsome. And she heard stories, but she never met him and all she could think about was what if he didn't want her.

And then she started crying which is how she was spotted, two hours later, by another six-year-old who was quietly and curiously observing her from a top of a tree.

Said observer jumped and landed right in front of the crying girl, making her gasp.

"Don't be afraid," the tree hopper spoke kindly, with a sad smile. When the other girl didn't seem to understand, she repeated her words again in English which seemed to have done the trick. "Why are you crying?" she added in concern, plopping herself down next to the stranger girl, happy that the other girl seemed to have overcome her momentary fear and didn't back away now that they were seated together.

"I... my mother left me here and my father hasn't picked me up yet" she disclosed, wiping her tears with her sleeves.

"Why did she leave you here?" the other girl asked in concern.

"She's sick. She's about to die," the admittance made the other kid cry again, face in her hands. Then, she felt a soft hand on her arm.

"I'm sorry. My parents died too," the tree hopper admitted sadly with understanding of the other girl's pain.

But the other girl didn't know what to say, so she nodded in empathy, appreciating the comfort of the physical contact, knowing from the look in her current company's eyes that she was in no danger.

"Why are you here?" she finally asked, which seemed to have irritated her little, new friend.

"My mentor wants me to sit with her and learn about the strategy of war. It's so boring! I'd much rather come out here and practice my fighting skills," she announced in a very serious tone that made her partner giggle. It wasn't very long lasting.

"But who are you fighting? There's no one here except for me," she observed, looking around just in case she was missing something.

"I'm practicing to kill mountain people!" the other girl declared with enthusiasm easily enough. But then she saw the blood run out of her sitting neighbor's face and asked "what's wrong?"

"I… I'm from the mountain," the other girl admitted quietly.

"You are?" The shock was evident on the young warrior's face and she only got a tentative nod in response.

"Well… I don't want to kill you," she added quickly, seeing the features on the face right in front of her soften in relief. "But… why are you here, then?"

"My father lives in a nearby village. He's not from the mountain."

"So… your mother is from the mountain but your father… is trikru?" the tree hopper asked in puzzlement. "I've never heard about anything like that before," she added, impressed.

For a second, the other girl was filled with pride, understanding that maybe there was something special about her. She heard the term trikru from her mother before so she knew what it meant, but she never knew her special upbringing would be a source of awe to others. But her moment of pride passed quickly when she was reminded of her current predicament.

Her partner understood what happened immediately and was quick to say "I'll take you to your father. Tell me, what village is he from?"

"My mom said he was from a place called Ton DC?" She was relieved, her new friend was proving to be helpful on top of already being kind and reassuring.

"I'm from Ton DC, too! What's your father's name?"

"Umm... his name is Nardo," the girl replied cautiously.

"Your… your father is Nardo?" The warrior's mouth was agape and she shook her head in disbelief. Her partner was full of surprises, and moreover, said partner didn't seem to realize the magnitude of these surprises.

"Yes. Is he nice?" the other girl asked innocently.

The question made the young warrior bark in laughter. He was nice. But he was so much more than simply nice.

"He is the fiercest warrior in all the eight clans!" she announced. "You must be a great warrior too!"

"I don't know. I have never been in a fight," came the shy admission.

"You have never… okay, I will have to teach you," she declared and stood up. "But first, let's go home." She offered her hand which was happily taken.

The other girl was surprised by the softness of her new friend's hand, considering it belonged to a warrior, to a girl that seemed wild and rough around the edges, but also had the kindest look in her eyes, her very striking eyes.

"Oh, I forgot," the young warrior said sheepishly, cutting her partner's trail of thought. "What's your name?"

"Oh, I'm… I'm Costia. Costia Romanoff," she replied officially, like her grandma told her she should do when she was asked for her name. Her grandma was gone now too. They all were.

"Romanoff? What's that?" her new friend asked in confusion.

"It's Russian," Costia explained.

"Russian?"

"Yeah. My ancestors are from Russia," she recited what she was told.

"What's a Russia?" Was the confused response of her friend.

"It's a country, over the sea," Costia replied and then realized something. "Over two seas." She got a puzzled look in return, it was clear more questions were to come.

"If I teach you to fight, will you tell me about things like that? Countries over the sea?" The warrior proposed excitedly.

"Of course. Even if you don't teach me to fight. We are friends, right?" Costia offered in hope. She may have felt like she was all alone, but then she met someone, someone who made her feel safe.

"Of course! You are my best friend now! Let's go!" and Costia was dragged along, her hand still in the unnamed girl's hand.

"Wait!" Costia stopped her. "What's your name?"

"Oh, oops. I'm Aleksandra kom trikru," her friend announced with pride, making Costia giggle. They may have been born in completely different places, but clearly what the adults in their lives taught them about manners wasn't all that different.

They smiled at each other for a few moments, thinking the exact same thought, before they resumed their journey to Ton DC, and Costia finally got to look around and absorb the wonders of the outside world. It was all beautiful.