Words of Wisdom:
Don't judge a book by its cover, no chapter is created equal. If you don't like this chapter, the next one is in a totally different style.
Chapter 1
"Welcome to this class, The First Protectors of the Peace. My name is Kaya and, as you already know, this semester we will be learning about the two most important leaders in our history."
"Does anybody remember the names of these leaders?"
Virtually every eye in the lecture hall rolls, their names were drilled into them since primary school, but three helpful hands are tentatively held up.
"You," Kaya points to a student with a head of red hair wearing a pair of semi-rimless frames, "Introduce yourself and answer the question please."
"My name is Kaynix," they said with a quiet, even tone and continued, "the first Protectors were Heda Lexa Kom Trikru and Wanheda Clarke Kom Skykru"
"Thank you Kaynix, that is correct. Now, I saw your eye rolls and I know while some of you view Clarke and Lexa as heroes, there are some of you who are tired of hearing the same stories over and over again. Most of you are probably only here because it is a foundation requirement, I know. My aim, however, is that by the end of this class you get to know Clarke and Lexa for who they were as people. Hopefully you will regain the sense of appreciation and respect for them that you seemed to have lost somewhere in the transition from child to teenager."
"Remember it is thanks to them that none of you have to participate in a conclave," Kaya gave the class a glare coupled with a raised eyebrow.
Bored expressions turn to sheepish grins.
"Now that we understand each other better," Kaya walks over to the podium and presses a button. The words Lesson 1: The Three Pillars of being Commander is revealed on three large screens. "Alright experts, what are the three pillars?"
"Wisdom"
"Compassion"
"Strength"
"Very good, last night you all read about Lexa's first meeting with the sky people Kane and Jaha. This encounter is one of the most succinct examples of Lexa exhibiting these three pillars.
Right away we see Lexa exhibiting wisdom in the way she deals with Skykru."
"It's been a while since the sky people landed and it is probably past time that she should have had at least a meeting with their leaders. Regardless, Lexa is smarter than trying to engage an enemy without having any information on their capabilities. Remember that at this point, Clarke had just burned three hundred of her warriors alive and Finn massacred a Trikru village. The information she got from her spies was not enough."
The words on the screen change to: Game plan stage one: interrogate the prisoners
"The Grounder commander chooses to scope out the sky people's intentions by pretending to be a servant girl with a weak leg."
"Can anybody guess why she set up this interrogation this way?"
"If they perceive her as weak the sky people will lower their guard and be more likely to their secrets," responds a blonde sitting near the front of the lecture hall.
"And your name is…?"
"Rina"
"Thank you Rina, that is certainly one of the reasons. Lexa is well known for using the power of manipulating appearances to suit her needs. Also, the prisoners have been starving for 2 days which insured that any fighting attempts would be weak."
"Lets move on to the interrogation itself. Would anyone be willing to start our discussion by giving their opinion of how the interrogation went?"
Aiden, a shy boy of average build is the first to speak, "After Gustus leaves, Jaha is the first to approach her. I think he probably hoped to win Lexa over by being nice to her so that she could convince the 'commander' to let them go."
Anya, a girl sitting to the right of Aiden adds, "I noticed that though Jaha was nice, Kane was the one who came to be respected by Heda."
"Great start, thank you both. Did anybody see any clues as to why Kane would be trusted over Jaha?" Kaya interjects.
"Kane and Jaha have been starving for 2 days and Jaha is abnormally calm while Kane is appropriately frustrated with the situation. Lexa also has more information on Kane as he was accompanied by a grounder when he came looking for the commander. She would know that Kane was the first of his group to leave his weapons before entering the village and that he did so without resistance," Kaynix adds. "Also, when Gustus entered the cell Kane stood right up while Jaha stayed sitting which I interpreted as defiant behavior."
"Does anyone have anything else to add?" After waiting a moment Kaya continues, "The third thing she would have noticed is that while Jaha tried to find a third way (trade medicine and tech for peace), again exhibiting resistance, meanwhile Kane accepted the terms and tried to sacrifice himself. If there is one thing that we know Lexa respects in a leader it is their ability to sacrifice everything for their people because that's what she did everyday for hers. Jaha sold the deal by saying to Kane, 'you didn't order the massacre.' Cumulatively, all of the above evidence caused her to trust Kane over Jaha."
"I said earlier that this Lexa showed all three pillars in this interrogation. We have seen wisdom and she obviously showed strength when she flipped Jaha onto his back after he pulled a knife to her neck. The instance of compassion is somewhat subtle. Even though Jaha tried to use Lexa as leverage to be released, she did not take pleasure as he was 'prepared' to send a message to the Skykru. The reading states that Lexa held a glint of compassion in her eyes"
A bell rings signaling class is over.